Spidey vs. Morbius in Spidey 4?

The chances are pretty good. Or at least, that’s the latest “Spider-Man 4″ rumor currently going around the net, courtesy of returning director Sam Raimi, who made a comment to Empire Magazine in their latest issue about who he would like to see as Spider-Man’s foe in the next movie. (Or is that next two movies? Since word is that parts 4 and 5 will be shot back-to-back.) Morbius, for those who don’t know, is a vampire character in the Marvel Universe, and one of his main foes is Spider-Man, and a certain lizard…

“I like it in the Marvel comics when Spider-Man fights Morbius,” said Raimi. “He’s really cool. A vampire! I like that combination of superhero plus supernatural.”

So the guy who is directing and writing the movie says, “Yes, I would like to see Spidey fight Morbius”, and it’s not gonna happen? Um, this is the guy who is doing the movie, after all. Chances are, unless Raimi is just making an innocent joke, Morbius is gonna be the next Spidey villain. Or at least, one of the villains, as Raimi has proven with part 3 that he’s not against overstuffing when it comes to villains.

Morbius was actually a Nobel Prize-winning biochemist, who had attempted to cure himself of a rare blood disease with an experimental treatment involving vampire bats and electroshock therapy. However, he instead became afflicted with a far worse condition that mimicked the powers and blood-thirst of legendary vampirism. Morbius now had to digest blood in order to survive and had a strong aversion to light. He gained the ability to fly, as well as superhuman strength, speed, and healing abilities.

The entry also mentions that Morbius once fought Spider-man and, get this — The Lizard. People have been waiting for Raimi to finally do something with the Lizard for a while now, since the character’s human alter ego have appeared in the franchise already. This might be a good spot for it. As in the comics, Morbius would be the main villain, while the Lizard is a pseudo villain, and in the end, it’s Spidey and Lizard versus Morbius. You get two times the villainy (in the early goings), then ol Lizard gets one of those redemption character arcs that Raimi seems to love in his Spidey movies.